Eighth Horse Dies in Past Three Weeks at Churchill Downs

Yet another horse has been euthanized at Churchill Downs, making it the eighth horse death at the facility of the Kentucky Derby in the last three weeks.

Source: @peta/Youtube

The horse, Rio Moon, suffered “a catastrophic injury to his left foreleg” after he finished Sunday’s sixth race. The three-year-old horse’s death is just the latest in fatalities at the track.

Seven horses died before the final Kentucky Derby race, which fueled an investigation into the deaths and sparked outrage amongst Animal rights activists.

Despite so-called efforts from the industry to make the sport safer for the animals, once again, animals have lost their lives for entertainment. In a statement, Joseph Grove of the group Animal Wellness Action said that the death toll was alarming.

“As a native Louisvillian, I get the passion people here and across the country feel about this iconic race,” Grove said in a statement. “But the care of the horses must be our first priority, and this cluster of horse deaths is startling. Lamentations are not enough.”

Churchill Downs said that each horse death was ‘unique’ and said that there was no pattern between the injuries. The group will now partner with Kentucky Horseracing Commission and the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority to investigate the incidents.

Like other animals that are exploited in the name of entertainment, horses are subjected to the same abuse and mistreatment felt by other animals we hold captive and “train” to perform. The horse racing industry is no exception in the long list of industries that profit from the misery of the animals they call their own.

And yet, despite the evidence of the cruelty horses endure in the horse racing industry, many “horse lovers” claim that horses are happy and even thrive in the industry. So, what is it like to have a conversation with “a real horse lover” who supports the horse racing industry? That’s what we kept in mind as we examined 5 Myths the Horse Racing Industry Spreads.

Horses do not exist for our sake, they exist for their own. No living being needs to be given the purpose of an exploited object. In the same way that you and I might justify our existence without being exploited by another, so too can horses live happy and comfortable lives without being raced or ridden. Check out (and consider donating or volunteering with) Redwings Horse Sanctuary to see how easy it is for horses to exist without having one of us so-called “evolved” apes strapped to its back.

Speak Up Sweatshirt By Tiny Rescue: Animal Collection

Related Content:

• Coach Thrown Out of Olympics After Punching Horse
• 7 Horses Died Under Unusual Circumstances Leading Up to the Kentucky Derby
• Petition: Ban Horse Trainer Who Allegedly Drugged Racehorse
• Animal Races Are Anything But Entertaining — and Why They Need to Stop
• Prosecutors Claim There is no Evidence of Animal Cruelty at Santa Anita Racetrack Despite the Almost 50 Deaths in One Year
• Greyhounds Testing Positive for Cocaine Shows Us Why the Animal Racing Industry Needs to End

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